Top Chef: The Final Six

We’ve reached the crucible phase. At this point, opinions have hardened about each of our cheftestants. Who deserves to be here and who doesn’t. Who’s been robbed and who skated. Who’s an obnoxious, insufferable ostentatious European and who’s a salt-of-the-earth, gorgeously tattooed — we’re getting ahead of ourselves. In previous iterations of the Only Cooking Competition Show that matters, the wheat and the chaff have been irrevocably distinguished, with only Season 2 an anomaly. Will anyone be choked tonight? We can only wish. In any event, our bellies are filled with delicious Brazilian stew (an Ezra Klein banger), fried plantains (from Ben Adler), an unseasonal ginger-filled salad (Ackerman), fresh baked bread (Matthew Ficke), blueberry pie (Mandy Simon) and fresh dark-chocolate cupcakes (Kay Steiger). Knives out.

Kate: vamonos

Kriston: Long knives drawn

10:06 PM Previously, superior season 5 chefs beat up on middleweights

Kate: a feature in food &wine, which gail simmmons apparently does not actually write for.

That is stunning that Leah still survives. My girlfriend just compared her to a cockroach.

I am not sad in the sense that Jamie’s attitude about Eric’s food really annoyed me. I mean if technique, flavor, and letting the product shine is not going to inspire you as a chef I don’t know what will.